1. Field of Disclosure
This disclosure relates to a removable sleeve with a chute secured inside that holds a humidifying device to enclose, protect and impart/control humidity about the neck of a fretted musical instrument.
2. Description of Related Art
The stock and neck of a fretted musical instrument, such as a guitar, ukulele, sitar, lute, banjo, mandolin, and electric guitar, are generally made of wood. The neck has a flat surface, sometimes called a fingerboard, into which small pieces of metal wire, formed as frets, are partially embedded, so that a portion of each fret (also called “frett” in this application) protrudes above the fingerboard at intervals corresponding to the notes of the chromatic scale. One or more vibrating strings fixed at two end points on the instrument and held under tension produce a musical sound that is transmitted by the musical instrument when the strings are struck or bowed by the player. By pressing a string down to the fingerboard, the player causes the string to contact a fret, shortening the length of the string that can vibrate when struck, and so can produce a variety of musical pitches.
While all wood musical instruments are affected to some degree by exposure to water vapor (also referred to as “humidity” or “moisture” in this application), those musical instruments that have “fretted” necks are particularly vulnerable to damage from exposure to extremes of humidity. Generally, high humidity causes the wood in the neck to expand, if it can; but if some portion of the neck is limited because it is braced by a supporting metal bar, or if the force from the vibrating strings held under tension is not uniform (because of different string thicknesses, for example), the wood in the neck may be unable to expand uniformly, and over time will cause the wood in the neck to warp. Conversely, when the ambient humidity is too low (i.e., too dry), the wood in the neck tends to contract, if it can; again, if there is some brace or exterior force on the neck that prevents the wood from contracting uniformly over a period of time, the result may be a neck that warps or cracks.
Fretted instruments have the additional problem that the wood in the neck can expand or contract at a different rate (and to a different extent) than the metal frets embedded in the neck. Over time, these different expansion/contraction rates may cause the frets to loosen, or separate from the wood fingerboard in which they are embedded. Loose frets can interfere with the pitch or quality of the sound, or cause the string to “buzz.” Since frets are often made of a piece of metal alloy, and are sharp, a loose fret that extends out beyond the width of the fingerboard can cut the fingers of a player sliding a hand along the side of the neck as he or she plays. Repair of the neck and frets in such instances is inevitable and expensive. Obviously, this particular issue is not a problem for non-fretted instruments, such as the violin, cello, or (acoustic) bass.
While humidifying devices (for example, guitar and super guitar DAMPITS®) have long been recognized as valuable tools for protecting the hollow bodies of musical instruments, protecting the neck of a fretted musical instrument presents a different and challenging problem. Placing a humidifying device in the instrument's carrying case is generally not efficient to protect the neck of a fretted instrument, since the imparted humidity is not localized near the neck of the instrument, and much of the humidity from the humidifying device is absorbed in the padding of the case itself. In addition, conventional humidifying devices rely on a reservoir of water that is contained (in part, by gravity) at the bottom of the humidifying device in a portion that is free of pores or other holes that would otherwise allow water to leak out and possibly damage the instrument. And since the neck of the fretted instrument protrudes upwardly from the body of the instrument when the instrument is propped upright on a musical stand or in a carrying case, the structure of a conventional humidifying device may be oriented upside down when placed over the neck of the instrument, and so allow water to leak out where it might contact the neck, frets or strings, causing damage or rust that defeats its purpose. Also, as a practical matter, the neck of a fretted instrument does not have a hollow space into which a humidifying device can be suspended, as contrasted with the body of the instrument, which does.